• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.22 no.4
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• pp.194-210
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• 2023

LiDAR plays a key role in autonomous vehicles, where it is used to detect the environment in place of the driver's eyes, and its role is expanding. In recent years, there has been a growing need to test the performance of LiDARs installed in autonomous vehicles. Many LiDAR performance tests have been conducted in simulated and indoor(lab) environments, but the number of tests in outdoor(field) and real-world road environments has been minimal. In this study, we compared LiDAR performance under the same conditions lab and field to determine the relationship between lab and field tests and to establish the characteristics and roles of each test environment. The experimental results showed that LiDAR detection performance varies depending on the lighting environment (direct sunlight, led) and the detected object. In particular, the effect of decreasing intensity due to increasing distance and rainfall is greater outdoors, suggesting that both lab and field experiments are necessary when testing LiDAR detection performance on objects. The results of this study are expected to be useful for organizations conducting research on the use of LiDAR sensors and facilities for LiDAR sensors.

• Journal of Advanced Navigation Technology
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• v.28 no.3
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• pp.300-308
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• 2024

Urban air mobility (UAM) is emerging as a revolutionary transportation solution to urban congestion and environmental issues. Especially, electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft are expected to enhance urban mobility, reduce traffic congestion, and decrease environmental pollution. However, the successful implementation and operation of UAM systems heavily rely on advanced technological infrastructure, particularly in sensor technology. Among these, 3D light detection and ranging (LiDAR) systems are essential for detecting obstacles and generating pathways in complex urban environments. This paper focuses on the challenges of developing LiDAR-based perception solutions, emphasizing the importance and performance of object detection capabilities using 3D LiDAR. It integrates LiDAR data processing algorithms and object detection methodologies to experimentally validate the effectiveness of perception solutions that contribute to the safe navigation of aircraft. This research significantly enhances the ability of aircraft to recognize and avoid obstacles effectively within urban settings.

• KIISE Transactions on Computing Practices
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• v.21 no.12
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• pp.745-750
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• 2015

LiDAR(Light Detection and Ranging) technology provides realistic 3-dimension image information, and it has been widely utilized in various fields. However, the utilization of this technology in the military domain requires prompt responses to dynamically changing tactical environment and is therefore limited since LiDAR technology requires complex processing in order for extensive amounts of LiDAR data to be utilized. In this paper, we introduce an Unmanned Aircraft Platform Based Real-time LiDAR Data Processing Architecture that can provide real-time detection information by parallel processing and off-loading between the UAV processing and high-performance data processing areas. We also conducted experiments to verify the feasibility of our proposed architecture. Processing with ARM cluster similar to the UAV platform processing area results in similar or better performance when compared to the current method. We determined that our proposed architecture can be utilized in the military domain for tactical and combat purposes such as unmanned monitoring system.

• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.22 no.5
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• pp.137-147
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• 2023

LiDAR is used in autonomous driving and various industrial fields to measure the size and distance of an object. In addition, the sensor also provides intensity images based on the amount of reflected light. This has a positive effect on sensor data processing by providing information on the shape of the object. LiDAR guarantees higher performance as the resolution increases but at an increased cost. These conditions also apply to LiDAR intensity images. Expensive equipment is essential to acquire high-resolution LiDAR intensity images. This study developed artificial intelligence to improve low-resolution LiDAR intensity images into high-resolution ones. Therefore, this study performed parameter analysis for the optimal super-resolution neural network model. The super-resolution algorithm was trained and verified using 2,500 LiDAR intensity images. As a result, the resolution of the intensity images were improved. These results can be applied to the autonomous driving field and help improve driving environment recognition and obstacle detection performance

• The Journal of The Korea Institute of Intelligent Transport Systems
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• v.20 no.6
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• pp.228-241
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• 2021

This study verified the performance change of a LiDAR when it detects road signs, which are potential cooperation targets for an autonomous vehicle. In particular, road signs of different colors and materials were produced and tested in controlled rainfall on the real road environment. The NPC and intensity were selected as the performance indicators, and a T-Test was used for comparison. The study results show that the performance of LiDAR for the detection of road signs was reduced with the increase of rainfall. The degradation of performance in retroreflective sheets was lesser than painted road signs, but at the amount of 40 mm/h or more, the detection performance of retroreflective sheets deteriorates to an extent that data cannot be collected. The performance level of black paint was lower than that of other colors on a clear day. In addition, the white sheet was most sensitively degraded with the increase in precipitation. These performance verification results are expected to be utilized in the manufacturing of road facilities that improve the visibility of sensors in the future.

• Korean Journal of Optics and Photonics
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• v.34 no.4
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• pp.139-150
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• 2023

Despite various light detection and ranging (LiDAR) architectures, it is very difficult to achieve long-range detection and high resolution in both vertical and horizontal directions with a wide field of view (FOV). The scanning architecture is advantageous for high-performance LiDAR that can attain long-range detection and high resolution for vertical and horizontal directions. However, a large-area photodetector (PD), which is disadvantageous for detection speed, is essentially required to secure the wide FOV. Thus we propose a PD based on the static unitary detector (STUD) technique that can operate multiple small-area PDs as a single large-area PD at a high speed. The InP/InGaAs STUD PIN-PD proposed in this paper is fabricated in various types, ranging from 1,256 ㎛×949 ㎛ using 32 small-area PDs of 1,256 ㎛×19 ㎛. In addition, we measure and analyze the noise and signal characteristics of the LiDAR receiving board, as well as the performance and sensitivity of various types of STUD PDs. Finally, the LiDAR receiving board utilizing the STUD PD is applied to a 3D scanning LiDAR prototype that uses a 1.5-㎛ master oscillator power amplifier laser. This LiDAR precisely detects long-range objects over 50 m away, and acquires high-resolution 3D images of 320 pixels×240 pixels with a diagonal FOV of 32.6 degrees simultaneously.

• International Journal of Aeronautical and Space Sciences
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• v.14 no.4
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• pp.369-378
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• 2013

This paper presents a vision/LiDAR integrated navigation system that provides accurate relative navigation performance on a general ground surface, in GNSS-denied environments. The considered ground surface during flight is approximated as a piecewise continuous model, with flat and slope surface profiles. In its implementation, the presented system consists of a strapdown IMU, and an aided sensor block, consisting of a vision sensor and a LiDAR on a stabilized gimbal platform. Thus, two-dimensional optical flow vectors from the vision sensor, and range information from LiDAR to ground are used to overcome the performance limit of the tactical grade inertial navigation solution without GNSS signal. In filter realization, the INS error model is employed, with measurement vectors containing two-dimensional velocity errors, and one differenced altitude in the navigation frame. In computing the altitude difference, the ground slope angle is estimated in a novel way, through two bisectional LiDAR signals, with a practical assumption representing a general ground profile. Finally, the overall integrated system is implemented, based on the extended Kalman filter framework, and the performance is demonstrated through a simulation study, with an aircraft flight trajectory scenario.

• Journal of Korea Water Resources Association
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.135-145
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• 2022

This study aims to verify the Drone utilization and the accuracy of the global navigation satellite system (GNSS), Drone RGB (Photogrammetry) (D-RGB), and Drone LiDAR (D-LiDAR) surveying performance in the downstream reaches of the local stream. The results of the measurement of Ground Control Point (GCP) and Check Point (CP) coordinates confirmed the excellence. This study was carried out by comparing GNSS, D-RGB, and D-LiDAR with the values which the hydraulic characteristics calculated using HEC-RAS model. The accuracy of three survey methods was compared in the area of the study which is the ownership station, to 6 GCP and 3 CP were installed. The comparison results showed that the D-LiDAR survey was excellent. The 100-year frequency design flood discharge was applied in the channel sections of the small stream. As a result of D-RGB surveying 2.30 m and D-LiDAR 1.80 m in the average bed elevation, and D-RGB surveying 4.73 m and D-LiDAR 4.25 m in the average flood condition. It is recommended that the performance of D-LiDAR surveying is efficient method and useful as the surveying technique of the geospatial information using the drone equipment in stream channel.

• Proceedings of the Korean Society of Surveying, Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography Conference
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• 2004.11a
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• pp.507-512
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• 2004

LiDAR data often include outliers, the points being signficantly separated from other points and so seeming not to be measured from physical surfaces. Outliers should be removed before processing further the data for applications. Many methods have been developed for other data rather than LiDAR data as a part of data mining processes but their straightforward application to LiDAR data did not provide satisfactory results. In this study, we have thus modified one of such methods by considering the properties of LiDAR data and developed a method based on the relative point density. The proposed method have been applied to simulated and real data. The results confirms its promising performance with respect to the processing time and the detection accuracy

• The Journal of Korea Robotics Society
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• v.18 no.2
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• pp.135-142
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• 2023

Light detection and ranging (LiDAR) sensors have been most widely used in terrestrial robotic applications because they can provide dense and precise measurements of the surrounding environments. However, the reliability of LiDAR measurements can considerably vary due to the different reflectivities of laser beams to the reflecting surface materials. This study presents a robust LiDAR-based mapping method for the varying laser reflectivities in indoor environments using the framework of simultaneous localization and mapping (SLAM). The proposed method can minimize the performance degradations in the SLAM accuracy by checking and discarding potentially unreliable LiDAR measurements in the SLAM front-end process. The gaps in point-cloud maps created by the proposed approach are filled by a Gaussian process regression method. Experimental results with a mobile robot platform in an indoor environment are presented to validate the effectiveness of the proposed methodology.